The searing pain momentarily stilled the shark's assault. Seizing that fleeting instant, Eric swapped her knife for a sharpened iron rod and drove it upward with force, angling it into the shallow wound she had inflicted moments before. With a sudden squelch, the rod plunged deep—more than half its length embedded within.
The shark thrashed wildly; Eric clenched the rod with iron resolve but was tossed about, her vision fragmented. Harnessing its momentum, she yanked the rod free, propelled herself upward with a vigorous kick, inhaled deeply, then surged forward.
The wounded predator lacked the strength to pursue her further. The other sharks were preoccupied with their own prey, leaving Eric unmolested for now. Capitalizing on this reprieve, she raced toward the nearest building, its uppermost floor barely rising above the flooded depths.
Clambering aboard, she collapsed, gasping, her lungs aflame with exertion.
"You're incredibly fortunate to have escaped a shark's jaws," remarked one of several surviving NPCs on that level.
Too winded to respond, Eric seized the moment to rest.
Seated upon the rooftop, she was struck by a sensation akin to drifting in the ocean's abyss.
"What are we to do? When will rescue arrive?"
"I believe I have internal injuries; my abdomen aches terribly."
The survivors exchanged anxious whispers.
The deep-sea sharks hunted without restraint, the waters growing thick with the metallic tang of blood.
"Sharks are converging!" an NPC shouted urgently.
Eric's eyes met the threat; the survivors crowded on the rooftop were nothing less than an exquisitely plated feast to the circling predators.
The sharks gathered relentlessly, encircling them, their menace mounting with every fin stroke. Eric's mind raced—how would she escape this impending doom?
"Swish, swish, swish!"
The ominous fins cut through the water, a chilling spectacle to the trapped survivors.
"The water level is dropping; the sharks cannot ascend," a poised woman among the NPCs composedly advised, marshaling the survivors toward the rooftop's center. "Stay as far from the sharks as possible—don't provoke their predatory instincts."
Eric complied, edging toward the core of the rooftop.
Not far off, a few survivors bobbed amid the surface. The circling sharks turned their tails and dived to hunt below.
"Run! Sharks!"
The distant survivors caught fragments of the warning, but escape was futile.
The sharks sliced swiftly between them; agonized screams pierced the air.
On the rooftop, Eric clenched her lips, sprinted to the edge, and plunged into the water.
"Halt! What are you doing?" the NPCs called after her, bewildered.
"Are you mad? Sharks are in the water!"
Eric was no fool. With no time to heed pleasantries in this violent, rapidly unfolding scenario, she grasped that the diversion of the sharks afforded a precious chance to flee toward the portal.
That towering building loomed conspicuously but remained distant. Midway, startled cries erupted behind her. Turning, she beheld a towering wall of ocean surging once more—a second tsunami.
Heart clenched, Eric abandoned all else to seek shelter. Yet the closest structures lay submerged, compelling her to dive once more and assess which building's highest floor remained nearest the surface.
Upon selection, she broke the water's surface and swam with purpose toward her destination. The terrified wails of survivors echoed beneath the deafening roar of the waves.
Eric slipped through a window into an inundated interior, furniture afloat and several corpses drifting in the murky flood. Navigating inward, she found the restroom and took refuge within.
The torrent struck again with such force that Eric was flipped end over end, clutching the toilet tightly to steady herself.
The violent currents buffeted her ears and invaded her nostrils, leaving her utterly miserable.
This wave persisted interminably, leading Eric to fear she'd drown trapped inside. As the fury waned, she attempted to retrace her path—only to find the window blocked by a derelict yacht, immovable despite her efforts.
With no recourse, she sought another exit, precious moments squandered. By the time she surfaced, she was at her limit.
"Cough, cough, hack!" Eric coughed violently, blood speckling her lips. Her chest throbbed with every breath, agony searing through her lungs.
Through the corner of her eye, she glimpsed the encroaching shark pack.
Misfortunes compounded, like a leaking roof beset by relentless rain.
Eric steeled herself and unveiled the lifeboat. The relentless tsunami waves would not cease; she feared a third, even a fourth surge was imminent. Wasting any more time adrift was a luxury she could ill afford.
This wave ruthlessly culled the survivors once more as the waters rose anew. Scanning the surface, Eric found no sign of fellow survivors and promptly deployed the lifeboat. Its speed was no trivial matter, rapidly closing the distance to the towering edifice ahead, leaving the pursuing sharks far behind.
Yet calamity struck: with barely two hundred meters remaining to the building, a third tsunami surged forth, its turbulent undulations roiling chaotically. Gritting her teeth, Eric accelerated.
A thunderous roar filled the air, as sky-soaring waves approached with fury surpassing the prior cataclysms.
"Save me! Take me with you!"
"Help! Please!"
Voices cried out desperately, but Eric could not afford to pause; her eyes remained fixed solely on the towering structure.
The waves churned ominously, rendering the lifeboat harder to steer. Yet the two hundred meters vanished swiftly, and Eric secured the vessel within the supermarket. Upon plunging into the waters, she swam toward the building.
Entering through a window, the floodwaters reached waist-high as she ascended the stairs. Just as she reached the next floor, the tsunami's assault resumed, forcing her to clutch a pillar and brace against the surging tide.
Patience, endurance; something struck her within the water—a dull blow that initially went unnoticed but soon blossomed into piercing agony.
Once the wave subsided, Eric scarcely noticed her injury, hastening to escape the inundated floor.
She anticipated yet a fourth tsunami; each wave greater in might and height than the last.
If this pattern held true, the portal must reside atop the highest floor—or perchance rescue aircraft might appear there.
Time was slipping away rapidly.
Ascending was no facile task; the stairwell was cluttered with debris, including corpses.
Rounding a corner, Eric found herself face to face with a shark.
The predator, swept inside by the flood, bared its teeth at her. Eric grasped the handrail to steady herself, but inertia pushed her perilously forward.
The stench of blood spewed from the shark's jaws, filling her nostrils as its teeth snapped loudly.
Closer still, her face nearly grazed by its ferocious bite.
Her heart thundered wildly. Regaining composure, Eric seized a stick, preparing to fend off the blocking shark. Suddenly, the fourth tsunami struck—a powerful surge that, while sparing her from submersion, carried an unsettling tremor.
Creaking and groaning—
The building shook violently!
The shark lurched and slid down the stairwell like a dark specter. Eric clung desperately to the handrail, sidestepping as the beast tumbled downward. Mist sprayed in through broken windows, some droplets settling upon her face, sharpening her senses.
Spiderweb cracks spidered across the walls, debris falling upon her. Distant cries from surviving NPCs signaled their growing alarm at the building's instability.
Holding the railing firmly, Eric pressed onward; the towering edifice was her sole refuge if she were to survive the impending tsunami. Without reaching the rooftop before the next wave, she doubted the structure's endurance.
Rocks and debris rattled down the stairwell as the building swayed, complicating her ascent.
A merciful absence: no second shark appeared, for which Eric was profoundly grateful.
Finally, upon reaching the rooftop and beholding the portal, she sighed with relief. The moment her foot crossed the threshold, another towering wave loomed ominously. A sudden shift in vision was accompanied by the distant, dreadful sound of the skyscraper's collapse.
[Player Eric has completed the standard quest: Tsunami Beach, earning 4 points.]
Exhausted beyond words, Eric staggered back into the Stone Pillar Forest, each step faltering.
Her body was riddled with wounds, all throbbing in painful concert. Every breath seared her lungs cruelly. A medical check left no choice—she had to purchase a healing kit. The remedy worked instantly, erasing her myriad injuries—a testament to the adage 'you get what you pay for.'
Many other players freshly emerged from quests were equally bedraggled, a somber pall settling over the Stone Pillar Forest. Each one wrestled with the burdens of ephemeral resurrection and the struggle for survival.
On the path, Eric encountered a half-burned player exuding the stench of decay, his gaze as lifeless as a stagnant pool.
He was evidently out of points, unable even to afford a healing pack. Without treatment of such wounds, the chance of surviving another quest was vanishingly slim.
A weighty gloom settled over Eric's heart. Though she constantly urged herself forward within this transit station, the oppressive atmosphere and such sights bred dread over whether she too would face such dire straits.
A mere 132 points—far too few. Eric knew unequivocally that she must return to the supernatural quests.
At the inn, she found the women's mutual aid group convening, but Nataly was absent.
Time seemed to warp strangely within the transit station; though only thirteen days had elapsed since her arrival, it felt as though thirteen months had passed.
Back in her room, Eric first bathed to wash away the sea's salt, changed into fresh clothes, then descended once more. Time was still early; she resolved to stroll through the streets—not to spend, for 132 points were a meager sum, far from frivolous indulgence.
Simply wandering the town granted a measure of solace and joy.
After her outing lifted her spirits, Eric returned to prepare a sumptuous dinner. As she ate, she set out the snake egg, allowing her future companion to share the meal—a modest yet vivid tapestry of daily life.
As her eyes closed and sleep beckoned, Eric silently wished for triumph in tomorrow's quest.